6.30.2012

Oh oh, sloshing molten core

The Earth's "sloshing molten core" is one of the reasons given by some for the non-uniform slowing down (oh oh) of said Earth's rotation, resulting in the need for a leap second — that's right, one extra second added to the last minute of June, which is tonight. This very night. 

So how are you going to spend your extra second?

Leap Second on Saturday Will Cause 61-Second Minute | Space.com

…try preparing a seconds pendulum by hanging a small weight on a string about 39.1 inches (99.3 centimeters) long. Adjust the string length beforehand until the swings exactly match the time signal ticks.  If the beeps denoting the start of each minute occur at the left extreme of a swing before the final (UTC) minute of June, they will be heard at the right extremes thereafter. (Although the swing amplitude will be steadily dying down, this does not affect a free pendulum's oscillation period.)

Or, you could just tuck in and get an extra second of sleep. How geeky are you, anyway?

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